Love Endures All
by brunettebabyyx
Summary: Eric has left CSI. Time apart, grueling cases and a suddenly jealous co-worker strive to pull Calleigh and Eric apart. But will their relationship last?
1. Chapter 1

"So I figured out what you're doing," Calleigh said to Eric. He lowered his eyes from his locker to the floor, then straight ahead again.

"I can't wait to hear where this is going," he mused. Calleigh took a deep breath before replying; she had to keep the tears from falling.

"You're leaving CSI aren't you?" She hoped that maybe she was wrong.

"You know me too well Calleigh," Eric muttered, shutting his locker and striding toward her. Calleigh's heart fell but she fought to not let her pain show. She stood straighter as Eric continued to speak to her, but she couldn't hear him. Her head was spinning. _'This isn't happening. This isn't the end,' _she thought. She dropped her gaze, suddenly finding it hard to look at him. Pain turned to anger.

"So this is it. Twelve years in the job and you're leaving just like that." It was more of a statement than a question. Eric just put his arms around her; she was crying now.

"Cal, I'm not saying I'll be gone forever, I just need some time to figure things out. She only shook her head, still not looking at him.

"Hey," he said.

"Hey…" he lifted her face towards his and wiped a tear from her cheek.

"The minute I make a decision, you'll be the one I call," he smiled meekly at her. She smiled back and leaned her head on his chest. She couldn't think of anything to say, this should make her feel better, but it won't make him stay.

"Thank you," was all she could summon. They hugged silently, prolonging goodbye.

"I should go, let you get back to work," Eric said

"Yeah," Calleigh answered. Tears began to run down her face again; she let them fall. He cupped her face with his hand and kissed her. She put her arms around his back again, helplessly trying to keep them together. A moment later, Eric was walking away. At the door he turned.

"Bye Cal,"

"Bye," she whispered. One last smile and he was gone

• • •

Calleigh's world came crashing down on her. Usually calm and composed, she wasn't used to losing control this way. She crumpled onto the bench and her head fell to her knees. Her mind exploded with memories of Eric: the first time they met; his corny pick up line. All the crime scenes they worked together. How badly she had hurt him while she was seeing Jake. The day he was shot, or _days_ she should say; how she had almost lost him. While she was in the hospital, he had confessed his love for her, in so many words. He had been her best friend, and now her whole heart, and she wasn't about to lose him like this. Not after everything they'd been through. Before she knew it she was up and running out of the locker room, out of CSI. She reached the parking lot and quickly scanned it, searching for Eric. She spotted him standing beside his car, keys in hand.

"Eric!" she yelled, beginning to run again.

"Calleigh, what's the matter, what's going on?" he asked when she reached him. Her eyes were red and she was breathing hard.

"I…just…" she said between breaths.

"I couldn't let you leave yet." She wiped her face with the arm of her jacket

"Calleigh, you're crying again what is it?" he grabbed her arms, looking worried now. She smiled a little but still continued to cry; she couldn't help herself. Finally Eric sighed.

"Calleigh, please don't cry. I know you're angry at me because of my decision, and I--" she threw her arms around him, cutting him off, and kissed him. She could feel the surprise on his face turn into a smile. When she stepped back, she continued to hold his hand.

"I couldn't let you leave without telling you that I'll always be here for you. If leaving CSI is what you need right now, then I will support you, because I just want you to be happy. I love you Eric." He stared at her for a moment before pulling her into a hug. With her in his arms, he felt like he had nothing to figure out, that everything was right. He hated himself for wanting to leave the job. It seemed like she always knew when to save him.

"Cal, I've been through a lot in my life, and I'm sorry I dragged you through it."

"Eric, there's no place I'd rather have been," she placed her hand on his cheek, smiled and closed her eyes. Eric could see the stains Calleigh's tears had left. He kissed one cheek, then the other, finally landing on her lips. One way or another, Eric knew they were going to be okay.

Rick Stetler walked out of CSI into the parking lot across from them, but Calleigh and Eric were so caught up in the moment, that they both failed to notice.

• • •

Calleigh blinked, seeing nothing but darkness as she slowly stirred awake. Instinctively, she rolled over grabbing her watch off the bedside table to check the time. She squinted at the small hands of the clock. Around 5:30am maybe. We wiped her eyes with her hands rolling back the other way. She smiled groggily when she saw Eric lying beside her, still asleep. She propped her head on her hand and watched him. The way his eyelids often twitched. The steady rhythm of his breathing. He looked completely at ease, and surprisingly seeing him this way relaxed her too. She lay her head on the pillow and drifted off back to sleep.

An hour later she woke again, this time to bright morning sun. She sat up, combing her hair with her fingers. Eric was up reading the newspaper and drinking a cup of coffee.

"Morning Cal," he smiled offering her his cup.

"Morning," she yawned. Taking it, she moved closer. He moved his arm around her shoulders, tucking her against him.

"Anything interesting?" Calleigh asked, peeking at the paper.

"Hmm, nothing really. A break-and-enter, a stolen car." Eric said. Calleigh sighed and leaned back against his shoulder.

"What are you thinking?" Eric asked, stroking her arm.

"How I really don't want to go to work today," she answered looking up at him, a shy smile appearing on her face.

"Calleigh Duquesne, not wanting to work?" "Shocking," he joked. She hit his chest playfully and they both laughed. She put her one arm around him and he stared at her.

"I love you," she said. He smiled

"I love you too." "But you still have to go to work," he laughed and kissed her gently on the forehead before getting out of bed.

• • •

It was a beautiful day in Miami that morning. Eric turned on the air conditioning while he waited for Calleigh to buckle up. When they got to CSI she turned to him.

"I guess I'll see you later." He squeezed her hand.

"Call me when you get off and we'll grab dinner." He smiled, trying to make things better.

"Okay," she said getting out

"Cal," Eric leaned across the seat, looking out the open door.

"I'm really sorry, about everything," he said. Calleigh sighed.

"It's alright, I'll see you later." Smiling, she shut the door and waved as he drove away. She turned to head inside, but found Rick Stetler in her way.

"Good morning, Ms. Duquesne," Rick smiled, but Calleigh saw the usual sly edge to Rick's face.

"Morning Rick," she replied hostilely, walking around him. Striding beside her, he added "I saw you and Delko in the parking lot yesterday afternoon." He saw her cheeks flare a bright pink.

"You of all people would remember the rule of fraternizing with co-workers Ms. Duquesne." Calleigh stopped short at the stairs and looked directly at him.

"Yes, I quite vividly recall your rule Rick. I also recall my personal life being none of your business. Now if you excuse me, I need to get to work." She walked up the stairs and quickly through the front door.

"We'll see," Rick said quietly, "we'll see."

• • •

Calleigh had seen worse days, she was sure, but this had to be right up there. First, they were investigating the murder of a nineteen-year-old girl (drivers license confirmed her name was Natalie Hamilton) at a party held the night before at the opening of a high end club on Star Island. The CSI's were unable to find sufficient evidence against their prime suspect, so he walked; for now. On top of it all, Eric wasn't there. This was harder than she anticipated. The suspect had just been led out of the interrogation room, leaving Calleigh all alone. She laid her head on the table. The cool glass felt good against her forehead. A moment later she heard the door open, then close, but she didn't bother to look up. Finally, after the silence continued, she glanced through the hair that had fallen over her face.

"Horatio…" she said, sitting up and frantically fixing herself.

"How are you holding up sweetheart?" Horatio asked, taking a seat next to her. She sat, thinking.

"It's different without him here," she answered slowly, looking around, but at what she didn't know.

"I know," Horatio put his hand on her shoulder,

"but it will be okay, he just needs some time."

"I hope you're right." As the day progressed, the team continued to search for evidence. The girl was stabbed, so there was no bullet for Calleigh to analyze. The wound was wide; the blow cracked two of her ribs. This made their job all the more difficult. By days end, the team had concluded the knife used to kill Natalie was not a match to any found at the scene. A dead end. It felt like a lifetime had passed when Calleigh had finally signed out. Outside in the evening air she took a deep breath. Pulling out her phone, she began dialing Eric's number when she heard someone cough, clearing their throat. She looked up sharply and saw him standing there.

"Eric," she breathed. He smiled and shrugged.

"I figured I'd surprise you." His smile widened as she jogged toward him. When she reached him she stopped, rethinking her hug. Ricks morning speech replayed in her mind. She suddenly felt uneasy. Looking over her shoulders she grabbed Eric's hand.

"C'mon let's get going," she spoke quickly leading him back to his car. As soon as they had left, Calleigh relaxed a little. Eric looked over at her.

"Something wrong Cal?" he asked. She sighed.

"No, I'm fine," she lied and looked away out the window.

"Hey," he touched her shoulder and she turned back to him.

"You don't have to lie to me, I'll understand." She took a deep breath.

"Rick Stetler." She looked at him, a mix of worry and anger crossed her face.

"What? Did he hurt you, or did he say something?" His own anger rising.

"He saw us yesterday," she answered quietly. He turned his gaze from her to the road.

"I'm so sorry Calleigh," he looked back at her, sadness now flooding his expression.

"Eric, this isn't your fault. Or mine. Listen, I've handled worse thank Rick Stetler, you know that. And besides," she took his hand in hers.

"He never wins." At that they both smiled.

• • •

The following day, the team still hadn't solved the murder of their party girl, when a call came in about a body found in an alleyway outside the same club Natalie was murdered in. Calleigh and Ryan arrived at the scene shortly after their M.E did.

"What've you got?" Ryan asked

"Male vic, looks to be around sixteen or seventeen-years-old," Tom replied, kneeling over the boys body.

"Gun shot wound to the chest; doesn't appear to be a through-and-through. I'll know more when I get him to autopsy." The CSI's began their search. Ryan looked down the alley. Back doors to various shops and clubs lined either side and a few dumpsters were scattered between him and the adjoining road.

"Looks like we got a lot of work ahead of us," Ryan sighed, glancing at his watch.

"I'll take the left-side dumpsters and doorways, and you take the right," Calleigh replied. She turned and headed around toward the shop on her side. She knocked quickly and a middle-aged, dark-haired man opened the door.

"I'm CSI Duquesne, with the Miami crime lab." She held up two photos, one of each of their victims.

"Sir, have you ever seen any of these people before?" Seeing the look on the mans face, Calleigh instinctively placed her hand on her gun and took a step back.

• • •


	2. Chapter 2

The man's face contorted, showing a mixture of various emotions: shock, rage, despair. After putting some space between them, Calleigh asked hesitantly,

"Sir, could you answer my question?" The man's features began to relax, his face now emotionless. Monotonously he answered,

"Those are my children. I mean…uh, well, that's my son Ian, and that's my wife's daughter Natalie."

"I'm sorry for your loss," Calleigh took her hand off her gun.

"Would you mind coming with me, so we can ask you a few questions? She asked

"My wife, she'll want to be there; she's still at the office," he muttered. Calleigh could see the shock wearing off, and the realization sinking in.

"I can contact your wife and send for a patrol officer to bring her in," she assured him. The man nodded and followed Calleigh to her hummer. She pulled out her phone and dialed Ryan's number.

"Ryan, I have a man in question. I'm taking him back to CSI."

"Sounds good, I'll catch you later," Ryan answered.

When they returned to the lab, Calleigh gave the man, Adam Brentford, over to Horatio for questioning. Adam's wife arrived and Horatio led them both into the interrogation room while Calleigh headed to autopsy to find out more on Ian and Natalie's murders, and to collect the bullet.

"Hey Tom, have anything new since this morning?"

"Well, I have your bullet Calleigh," he said handing her an evidence bag with the bullet shard inside.

"It turns out Natalie Hamilton and Ian Brentford were step siblings," Calleigh informed him.

"That makes sense," Tom replied.

"I figured, two murders around the same club, on the same night? Not likely. So, I ran their stomach contents and found the same appetizers served at the club that night, according to Ryan, in each of their stomachs."

"Hmm, older sister sneaking younger brother into the party maybe?" Calleigh raised an eyebrow. The M.E shrugged,

"Could be."

"Well, thanks Tom! I'm off to firearms." Outside, she met Ryan in the hallway, carrying an evidence bag.

"Hey Calleigh, I found a few casings inside the club Natalie was murdered. Natalie wasn't shot, so I thought they could be from whoever killed Ian, and that his body could have been dumped in the alley afterwards."

"Thanks Ryan, I'll let you know if I get a match," she held up the bullet Tom gave her. She took the casings and the bullet into her ballistics lab. She finished taking the photos and uploading them onto her computer and was now running them through IBIS. She had been on the go all morning, and now, sitting alone in firearms, her mind began to wander. She thought of Eric. This was only the second day back with him gone but she still felt the pain of being without him. She knew she was being ridiculous, she would see him after work, but she had never been this close with anyone else. Plus, she couldn't help but blame herself for him leaving CSI in the first place. If only she hadn't shot him…No! It wasn't her fault. That whole incident, was an accident.

"Who are you talking to Cal?" the voice came from behind her. She hadn't realized she was thinking aloud. She turned so quickly she nearly fell off her chair.

"Eric?!" she exclaimed. His name echoed through the quiet room. As he walked toward her she eyed the visitors pass he wore on his chest.

"What are you doing here?" She started to stand up, but Eric stopped her by putting his hands on her shoulders and moving her back into her seat.

"What…" she began.

"I have news," he smiled. Calleigh fidgeted in her seat.

"Good news," she said, seeing his expression.

"I missed you." He moved his hands from her shoulders, slowing bringing them down her arms, to her waist. Calleigh watched his fingers, her arms tingling wherever he touched her. When he stopped she looked into his face, biting her lip. He grabbed either side of her chair and began to push, rolling her and the chair until they stopped against the side of her desk. Calleigh's eyes glinted with intrigue.

"Eric? What is it?" He kept his hands on her chair.

"You have a big murder trial coming up. Well, Horatio called me and said he could use my help, since I was working at the time of that particular murder."

"Okay…" Calleigh couldn't hide her excitement, or her confusion.

"We got to talking, and I told him I'd made a mistake in leaving. That even though it had only been two days, I'd done all the thinking I need," he paused.

"I need to be with you Calleigh, its killing me not to be. This team, it's my life."

"Did Horatio…" she couldn't even finish her sentence, but Eric understood. He nodded.

"I'm back Calleigh, starting tomorrow." Her eyes welled with tears but she blinked them away. She reached up and hugged him. He pulled her up onto her feet.

"Eric, I'm so glad. I've missed working with you, but are you sure this is what you want" He linked his arms around her waist and stared at her.

"I've never been more sure of anything. Except maybe of how much I love you." He laughed. Calleigh's smile stretched ear to ear.

"I love you too," she whispered. When Eric kissed her, though, she reluctantly put her hands on his chest and pushed him away.

"Eric, we can't do this here." He didn't listen. He kissed her jaw line while she spoke. Between kisses he managed to answer.

"Cal, if you're worried about Rick again, don't be, because technically… I don't work here." He took her hand and placed it on his visitors pass; over his heart.

"Yet," he smiled and Calleigh laughed, letting him kiss her again, forgetting about the work she had to finish, about Rick, about everything.

• • •

Calleigh tried to think. What did they know about their victims? They were family; they had been at the same club the night they were murdered. Natalie was stabbed, Ian was shot. Neither weapon was found at the scene, meaning the killers (or _killer_) took them. There had to be something else, an X-factor they were missing, that linked these crimes together. This couldn't be a coincidence. Elbows on the table, she rubbed her eyes. She looked up, then, and saw Eric walking down the hall toward her. His visitors pass had been replaced by his badge, fastened to his hip. She stood, grinning as he entered the room and stood beside her.

"There's the Eric I remember. Good Afternoon, officer Delko," Calleigh giggled. Eric knew better than to greet her the way he wanted to.

"Hey Cal, how's your day been?"

"Fine, I guess," she sighed,

"I just wish we'd catch at break with this case, so we could put a killer behind bars." As if by chance, Tom came bursting through the lab door.

"Calleigh! I found something that just may break your case."

"Great, Tom, what is it? She walked around Eric to stand beside Tom. He handed her a folder.

"Natalie Hamilton was pregnant?" she looked up at Tom

"How long?"

"About eight weeks, and judging by the tearing and bruising I found, my guess is the sex wasn't consensual."

"You mean rape?" Eric added in.

"Exactly. I recovered biologicals and I've sent them to Ms. Boavista," Tom said, looking pleased with himself. He turned and headed back to autopsy. As he left Rick walked in, joining Calleigh and Eric where Tom had left them.

"Hello Mr. Delko. Nice to have you back again," Rick said, eying Eric's badge.

"Thanks Rick, it's nice to see you. It's been a while," Eric answered sarcastically.

Calleigh stood silently as the men spoke.

"I imagine Ms. Duquesne is happy to have you back," Rick smirked, looking Calleigh up and down out of the corner of his eye. Calleigh shifted uneasily.

"He's a good colleague, of course I'm glad to have him back," Calleigh answered for Eric, not taking her glaring gaze off Rick.

"Well, the reason I'm here, is to inform you that regarding your…situation, I believe it to be a conflict of interest for Mr. Delko to join the case at this time." Calleigh and Eric looked at each other. Rick smiled; pleased he had gotten some sort of reaction.

"If you would, please, Mr. Delko." He gestured to the door. Eric shook his head, but looked again at Calleigh.

"Don't worry about it Calleigh. We'll talk later." When Rick had looked at his watch, Eric winked at her. Calleigh blushed and went back to her notes and crime scene photos. When she noticed Rick hadn't left the room, she looked up.

"Was there something else I could do for you Rick?" He cocked his head slightly and continued to stare at her.

"Not _now_, Ms. Duquesne."


	3. Chapter 3

_ Rubbing his temples furiously, he sat, shaking with anger. This was driving him crazy; no __**she**__. She was driving him crazy. He had tried everything, and he had waited long enough. Man after man she went through; wooing them with her blonde hair, petite frame and her cunning Southern accent. Calleigh Duquesne. For years he had watched her, waiting for the moment their paths would cross; and they have, from time to time. They have many times, recently in fact, since Eric Delko has returned. And for years he searched, trying to figure whether this was suppressed attraction or merely jealousy. Jealous. The word didn't even begin to describe what he felt. No matter what happened to her, she always came out on top. In her career, her relationships; everything. Maybe envy is a better word. He became more conscious of his thoughts. He shook his head and chuckled. 'Envious? Not a chance.' He stood up and grabbed his coffee of the desk. He began to pace and continued to do so until he swore he had worn impressions into the carpet. He drank the coffee slowly, feeling it run down his dry throat. It had gone cold before he finished it. He kept on with his pacing, the rhythm of his footsteps relaxing his mind enough to think straight. He was plotting. He wasn't sure of his plan, but he knew he had to do something. The madness was ripping him apart, and it was because of her. He couldn't remember the last time he felt this enraged. It was like the little devil and angel were sitting on his shoulders, only the angel was missing. He stopped pacing. He closed his eyes and drew a long, ragged breath. When he opened his eyes, they had begun to fill with tears; the anger brimming so high he couldn't see. He returned to his original position in the chair. He drummed his fingers against the coffee cup._

'_One day,' he thought, breathing slowly, 'she's going to get hers.'_

_ "One day," he said to himself,_

_ "You are going to win."_

• • •

The weekend had come finally, and Calleigh and Eric were going to make the most of it. They spent the afternoon wandering around downtown Miami. They had gone for lunch and now as the sun began to set, day giving way to night, they walked along the beach. Barefoot and shoes in hand, they strolled in the surf, letting the water and sand rush around their feet. Calleigh watched as the bright ball of sunlight merged with the wide ocean horizon and listened to the waves run up and down the beach. There were only a few others in sight. A group of teenagers around a campfire, and a few families with children begging to stay longer. They passed abandoned sand castles and hearts declaring young love drawn in the sand. Eric turned and walked out of the water and farther up the shore. A few feet away, he sat. He patted the sand in front of him and Calleigh joined him. She rested her arms on his knees and he rubbed her shoulders.

"You've been quiet for a while Cal, some thing the matter?" Eric asked. She leaned back against his chest.

"I'm just thinking," she answered quietly, staring out over the ocean.

"About what?" he asked again, taking her hands

"Everything. About you; us. About the case. You know, two kids died this week. Two innocent kids. I mean, they're never going to get to have this." She moved her thumb in small circles over his hand.

"Its not your fault Calleigh," Eric squeezed her hand.

"It was always my fault," she whispered, more to herself than anything.

"How could it have been, you didn't even--" but something told Eric she wasn't talking about the case anymore.

"What are you talking about Calleigh?"

"Us. Our situation at work. You left, now Rick won't even let us stand in the same room together let alone work a case together. It wouldn't have been this way if I hadn't shot you." She tried to keep her voice steady, but she could feel the conversation becoming heated.

"What? Cal, you were just doing your job."

"Maybe I wouldn't have had to 'just-do-my-job' if you hadn't gone after your father. Who would've ended up in prison with or without your help." She added without thinking. She gasped.

"Eric, I…" He let go of her hands and stood up. She followed and faced him.

"Eric, that's not how I meant it." she said quickly.

"Yes it is Calleigh, and since you don't want to take all the blame; now its my fault right? You have to remember, he got me out of prison."

"You know I would've done the same thing!" she responded angrily, stepping closer to him. He stepped back.

"Why didn't you then? He obviously got there before you." Now she stepped back, a look of hurt passing over her face.

"That's not fair Eric."

"I've got to go," Eric said. He left her standing alone in the sand, so confused she didn't think to follow him. She watched his silhouette until it fell out of sight. She tried to figure out what just happened. She sighed and walked back up the beach the way they had come and got a cab ride home, since they had taken Eric's car to get here. At home, she sat on her bed and cried. All she could ask was 'why?' She looked around her empty room and everything, it seemed, reminded her of Eric. Her dresser, she knew there was a shirt in there belonging to him. All the times he'd been here ran through her mind. At that moment, she knew what she had to do. She wiped the tears from her face, grabbed her car keys and ran out the door.

Calleigh pulled up outside Eric's place, parked and walked quickly to the front door. She paused, trying to think of what she was going to say to him. She knocked, holding her breath. She heard a few footsteps before he answered the door.

"Calleigh," he said.

"Hey," she answered sheepishly, words suddenly failing her. She looked up at him, about to try and explain herself, when he lifted her up into a hug, carrying her into the house. She tightened her arms around his neck, felt him tighten his arms around her waist, and kissed him. Both their hearts poured into the kiss; explanations were no longer necessary.

"Eric, I'm so sorry," Calleigh cried.

"No, no Cal I'm sorry. I didn't listen to you and tonight I overreacted." Calleigh shook her head and kept kissing him. When she stopped, she realized they were no longer in the foyer. Eric had carried her to his bedroom. She looked at him and saw his worried expression. She let go of him and sat down on the bed; his worried look disappeared and the corners of his mouth curved into a smile. She motioned with her finger for him to come closer, and when he did, she moved back into the middle of the bed. Their kisses became more gentle; relaxed. Calleigh tugged at the bottom of Eric's shirt, pulling it over his head. She kissed her way down his chest, over his stomach, and back up again. He kissed the nape of her neck and she laid her head back against the pillow.

"Eric…"

"I love you," his voice was somewhat muffled. She smiled. He began to work at her shirt. He could feel the warmth of her stomach under the fabric as he lifted her shirt higher. He had only raised it half way up, when a loud crash from the other room interrupted them.

• • •


	4. Chapter 4

The sound shattered the silence, ringing throughout every room. Calleigh and Eric lay motionless in each others arms, ripped away from their momentary paradise. They looked, horrified, at one another. Eric put a finger to his lips and Calleigh nodded slowly in response. Adrenaline pulsed through them, their hearts pounding in their ears. Eric slipped off the bed and found his gun on the dresser. Walking back toward her he saw she was holding his shirt. He quickly threw it back on and took her hand in one of his own; his gun held high in the other. One glance between them, and they made their way out of the bedroom, down the hallway, toward the living room. Together they rounded the corner, not sure what to expect. They looked around. Someone had thrown a rock through Eric's window. The rock had rolled and landed under the coffee table. Glass from the window covered the entire room; splayed over the couch and stuck in the carpet. Eric let go of Calleigh's hand and ran out the front door. Calleigh covered her mouth in disbelief. Five minutes ago everything had been perfect, only now to be as if it had never happened. She began biting her nail nervously, looking around the darkened room. She couldn't remember what time it had been when she got here. Her mind began to race. '_It was probably some kid making a joke. Or what if it was a threat? Who else would be trying to get to Eric, or was this meant for her? But then, who else knew she was here?' _She saw Eric's phone on the kitchen counter. She rushed to pick it up, her fingers beginning to shake, and dialed.

"Horatio, it's Calleigh. We may have a situation," the sound of her own voice startled her.

"Calleigh, where are you?" Horatio answered urgently..

"I…I'm at Eric's place," she sighed, closing her eyes and biting her lip.

"I'm on my way," he answered. She hung up but continued to stare blankly at the phone. Eric finally came back inside. He saw her expression and immediately tried his best to comfort her.

"Cal, everything's alright now. Whoever it was, they took off." He wrapped his arms around her. The draft made Calleigh shiver and Eric hugged her tighter.

"I called Horatio," she shifted back and looked up at him.

"Great, if anyone, H will figure out who did this."

"Yeah I know, but Eric, you don't understand. If he brings the team down here, they'll all know about us," she looked at the ground. Eric rubbed her arms.

"We'll get through it Calleigh, I promise." They both looked out the kitchen window as the sound of cars approached. Calleigh looked at him, wide-eyed. Eric rested his forehead against hers.

"It'll be fine." He gave her a quick kiss.

"And when this is over, we'll pick up where we left off." He winked and went to let Horatio inside. Calleigh looked at her feet, smiling, trying to keep her blush at bay. She sat down at the table and realizing she was still holding Eric's phone, placed it on the counter beside her. She crossed her legs, trying to retain some sort of professionalism. She turned in her seat as Horatio and Natalia came in, Natalia carrying her silver kit. '_Here we go,' _Calleigh thought. She stood up and crossed her arms. It was freezing. She could see Natalia's surprise to see her; trying to find something to say.

"Hey Calleigh, everything alright? What happened?" Natalia looked at the glass coated living room.

"Well Eric and I heard a crash and when we got to the living room, the window was smashed and the guy had taken off," Calleigh told her.

"Did you happen to see who did it, or anything else out of place before the window was broken?" Natalia glanced out the window at the street.

"Um, no. I was…well we were…um, you know…in the other room," Calleigh's face was so hot, she could feel her ears burning. Natalia only smiled.

"He has a way of distracting you, doesn't he?" she laughed. Calleigh laughed a little, looking over at Eric who was talking to Horatio by the door.

"Yeah, he does."

"Well, let's see what we have here," Natalia walked into the living room and began photographing and taking notes. Horatio joined her and Eric returned to Calleigh's side. He smiled at her.

"You look happier than you did a minute ago. What did Natalia say to you?" he put his arm around her shoulder.

"Nothing special, just girl talk," she smiled in Natalia's direction. Eric laughed. Together they watched their colleagues collect evidence.

"I think I should go, though," Calleigh whispered.

"What, why?" Eric whispered back.

"Walk me to the door," Calleigh said taking his hand and leading him outside. Eric shut the door behind them and they stood alone on the porch. It was dark, except for the light above them and a few glowing windows along the street. Eric took both of her hands.

"You know, you don't have to go Cal," he sort of begged. Calleigh shook her head and put his arms around his neck, hugging him.

"I know, and I don't want to, but I think I should. I'm not really sure why, I just think it would be better if I did."

"Okay," Eric walked with her to her car which was still parked along the sidewalk. At her car they stopped.

"Oh my…" Calleigh stepped back, right into Eric.

"What?" Eric looked over her shoulder. He exhaled. The driver's side window of Calleigh's car had been smashed in. He put his hands on her shoulders and turned his head quickly around, scanning the street. Nothing. They were the only ones visible up and down the block.

"Eric!" Calleigh had turned to face him.

"This can't be a coincidence. Someone is trying to get to me. If whoever did this wanted to get to you, they would've gone for your car," she took a deep breath.

"Someone else besides Horatio and Natalia knows we're together."

"Calleigh, please don't go home, not until we figure this out at least." He pleaded. She nodded quickly. They both ran back up the driveway.

"Horatio!" Eric burst through the door.

"Eric, talk to me," Horatio followed him back outside. Calleigh and Natalia stayed inside.

"Calleigh, what's going on?"

"Someone broke into my car. I'm thinking it may be the same guy who broke Eric's window." Natalia's eye's widened. Horatio and Eric returned a moment later.

"Natalia, go out and process Calleigh's car please. Eric, you and Calleigh stay here so I can reach both of you if I need to," Horatio ordered. Eric and Calleigh sat down across from each other at the kitchen table. Horatio left to join Natalia outside.

"This could be just some sick prank," Eric offered, trying to calm the situation.

"I doubt it," Calleigh answered, resting her head in her hand. Eric put his hand over hers and leaned closer to her.

"If this is serious, Calleigh, I promise I won't let anything happen to you." She smiled.

"I know."

_Back at home, he opened the door, hung up his jacket and ditched his gloves, throwing them in his fireplace. He sat down and watched as they slowly began to burn. His face was emotionless. He had watched the house all day, waiting for them to come home. Finally they did, and that's when he broke the windows. He had to get his point across, and this was only the beginning. It was the perfect plan; quick and clean, no evidence to link back to him. He rubbed his hands together, elaborating on his next move. So many things he could do, but he had to wait. Wait for them to let their guard down before he'd strike again. He stood up and went to bed, turning off all the lights on the way. His work was done, for tonight._

• • •


	5. Chapter 5

The uneasiness of last night slowly slipped to the back of Calleigh's mind as she walked toward the interrogation room with Horatio the next day. They were sure they had solved their Natalie Hamilton murder. Natalia ran the biologicals Tom had given her and found a match; Natalie's step father. Adam Brentford tapped his foot restlessly as he awaited the CSI's. He rolled his eyes as they entered. It was silent as Calleigh shut the door behind her. The heels of her pumps clicked against the floor as she made her way to Horatio's side. The man shifted in his seat and cleared his throat.

"Is this going to take long? I have an important meeting regarding the expansion of my business in half an hour." Horatio eyed Mr. Brentford's expensive suit, polished shoes and trimmed hair, and came to the conclusion that he was a wealthy man.

"I'm afraid you may have to cancel your meeting Mr. Brentford," Horatio sat down and folded his hands.

"Oh really, and why is that?" Mr. Brentford sneered, mimicking Horatio's position. His hazel eyes darted between Calleigh and Horatio.

"Because you're under arrest for the murder of your step daughter Natalie Hamilton," Calleigh accused, throwing the folder she was holding onto the table between them. Adam dragged the file across the table and opened it.

"Just out of curiosity, was her pregnancy part of your plan?" Calleigh crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," the man lied, closing the file and pushing it away.

"Let me guess, you raped Natalie, getting her pregnant. Then it began to scare you, and you stabbed her to cover up your problem; am I right?" Calleigh's lips became a thin, angry line.

"Hey!" Mr. Brentford shouted getting to his feet and slamming the table with his fist. Horatio stiffened and Calleigh jumped.

"It wasn't out of fear. My business and my reputation were on the line! I couldn't let it get around, and she refused to get rid of the baby."

"Did you kill your son too?" Horatio watched as the red in the man's face disappeared and he sat back down.

"Of course not. Not my own son. He was everything to me."

"The bullet and casings I collected were a match to a gun registered in your name," Calleigh glared, fed up with his lies.

"Ian was my only son; I would never do anything like this to him."

"Well-" Calleigh began.

"Hold on Calleigh," Horatio interrupted.

"Mr. Brentford, does anyone else have access to your weapon?" Calleigh and Horatio watched as he puzzled over the question. Suddenly, his eyes widened.

"My wife."

"Mrs. Brentford," Ryan now sat with Calleigh, twenty minutes later. Horatio took Mr. Brentford to booking, leaving the three of them alone.

"Did you have access to your husband's firearm?" This evidence was new; they hadn't had the time to gather anything against Mrs. Brentford. If she was involved with Ian's murder, they were relying on a confession.

"Of course, my husband and I shared everything," she answered calmly. Her strawberry blonde hair was pulled back into a tight bun, and like her husband, her status of wealth could be predicted from her wardrobe: freshly pressed blazer, designer shoes, and an enormous wedding ring. The wedding ring; Calleigh had a hunch.

"Excuse me," she whispered to Ryan and slipped out of the room. She walked quickly through the lab, returning a moment later with her kit. She proceeded to swab Mrs. Brentford's hands; no GSR. She sighed and swabbed the ring as a last hope. When the swab turned blue Calleigh smiled and noted,

"You're left handed."

"Yes, so, what does that have to do with anything?" Mrs. Brentford asked defensively.

"This tells me you have gun shot residue on your wedding ring," Calleigh held the blue swab out for the woman to see.

"Did you kill your step son?" Ryan piped up, crossing his arms across his chest. The woman stiffened, her palms beginning to sweat. She stared at her hands as she wiped them on her skirt. Soon her vision became blurred with tears she couldn't hold back. She inhaled sharply and looked up, some of the tears slipping over her eyelashes.

"I didn't want to do it, but…one day I came home, and that's when I heard…my husband and…-" Mrs. Brentford put a hand to her face to keep from crying any harder. Calleigh and Ryan looked from each other, back to Mrs. Brentford.

"Then Natalie went missing, and I don't know…something just told me my husband was behind it. So I followed Ian to the club and…I did it, I shot him." She was breathing so hard she could barely get the words out.

"Adam took my baby girl from me; so I took his son from him." She looked both Calleigh and Ryan in the eyes; her own eyes still brimming with tears.

"You're under arrest for the murder of Ian Brentford," Calleigh whispered, trying to keep her own emotions from compromising the situation. The three of them stood and Calleigh watched as Ryan lead the woman to where Horatio was waiting with her husband. She looked at her watch; break time. She shook her head in Mrs. Brentford's direction and headed upstairs. Pouring herself a cup of coffee, she sat down on the couch and rested both of her elbows on her knees. She was glad the case was over, but somehow the resolution didn't comfort her. Her throat felt hoarse so she let her coffee run slowly down, soothing the ache. Closing her eyes, she tried to think of something else. A tear escaped and flowed over her cheek, landing at the corner of her lips. She quickly wiped the tear away before she could think anymore about the case. Why all of a sudden did she have such an influx of emotions? Wiping her eyes again, she blinked and shook her head. This isn't the woman she made herself out to be. She took another sip of coffee, attempting again to distract herself, and thought about Eric. She hadn't seen him since they arrived this morning. She smiled, remembering.

_Horatio and Natalia had left with the evidence they collected, leaving them together with only their assumptions to what had just happened. _

_ "This was because of me, I know it," Calleigh said lying beside Eric later that night. _

_ "You don't know that for sure Cal," Eric answered softly. Calleigh rolled onto her side to face him._

_ "But my car window; it doesn't make any sense," she argued. Eric took her hand and laced their fingers together._

_ "It could be a coincidence," he insisted. In the dark, she shot him a somewhat sarcastic look. He could tell by her not responding what she was doing. He only laughed. He took his hand from hers and rubbed her arm; he knew she wasn't about to give up her case. She scooted closer to him and he hugged her close, his hand now running through her hair. She moved a moment later, until Eric was lying on his back. _

"_What do you think though, honestly?" she rested on his chest and looked at him as he spoke. A small ray of moonlight crept into the room and illuminated his face just enough to read his expression. He put his arm around her._

"_I'm not sure. It could've been nothing, or it could be something serious." _

"_Gee, thanks for the well-thought-out answer Eric," Calleigh rolled her eyes, but smiled._

"_What? It's the truth!" Eric laughed. They laughed together, for no reason at all._

"_For now I don't think you should worry about it Calleigh."_

"_Okay." She slowly lifted herself up onto her elbows and found his lips in the dark. Before she could break away and say goodnight, Eric kissed her back, holding her face in his hands. The surprise caught her off guard, but she soon went along with it. She slid from her stomach to her knees, finally moving until she was sitting on Eric's lap. He stared up at her, resting his hands on the sides of her legs. She leaned toward him._

"_You know, you did promise me we'd pick up where we left off when this was over," she whispered and watched Eric smile. She was wearing an old button-down shirt of Eric's. He reached for the first button, waiting for it to slowly fall open before starting on the next one…_

Calleigh's thoughts were interrupted as Ryan joined her in the break room. She shook her head, hiding the memory from her expression.

"Hey," she smiled. Her coffee had gotten cold so she went to the sink to dump the rest. Ryan grabbed some water from the fridge. He sat down on the couch across from where Calleigh just sat. He rested against the back of the couch and sighed contently.

"I for one am glad to be done with this case," he said sipping his water.

"I hear you," Calleigh agreed, sitting back down and resting, too, against the back of her couch. Ryan scratched the back of his neck, and chuckled.

"Eric will be glad, I'm sure," he smiled jokingly. Calleigh frowned,

"What do you mean by that?" she sat up straight, staring at him.

"Well, you know, now that you've finished your case there's no reason you two can't work together again, right? He smiled again.

"It's not that we couldn't work together, it's just…he had other cases to catch up on," she said frantically. '_Please, _not_ Ryan," _she thought.

"What cases? He just got out of the hospital and just got back to work," Ryan narrowed his eyes and smirked, knowing she'd have to tell him sooner or later. Calleigh sighed in defeat.

"Fine, we've been seeing each other. Rick wouldn't let Eric work the case," she glanced around the room, avoiding Ryan's eyes.

"I knew it…Jesse owes me ten bucks," Ryan muttered and chuckled again. Calleigh shook her head.

"Hey, Calleigh," Ryan waited until she looked up at him.

"Your secret is safe with me, as long as you want it to be." Calleigh smiled at him, rethinking her earlier thought.

"Thanks Ryan." He winked at her and headed down to the lab.

• • •

_The day had gone by in its usual fashion. The lab busy with police officers and CSI's bustling about. His plan had obviously been successful; the past nights events forgotten in the constant reality of the work force. He sat again in his office, where he had sat plotting once before, thinking about her. He hadn't always thought of her this way. In fact he had never thought of her as anything more than an irritating colleague, but he'd always been a jealous man; he admitted that now. He couldn't exactly pin point the moment his previous hatred toward her had turned into, not love, but pure obsession. The more he had to deal with her, the more extraordinarily attractive he found her. The more trouble she got in, the more he liked it. The whole mystery of his feelings was beyond him. All he knew was what he was feeling now, and those feelings were the driving force behind his next move; whatever that next move might be. He wasn't about to let Calleigh Duquesne go through another man, as much as he loathed Eric Delko and would fancy seeing him suffer; not on his watch. She would be his one day, if it was the last thing he did._


	6. Chapter 6

The end of their previous case seemed to welcome another. A young woman was found dead in her pool the next morning, discovered by her husband. Eric and Calleigh arrived at the scene, finally able to work together. They walked side by side over a small stone pathway that led to the victim's back yard.

"Now, we have to be on our best behavior, or we'll have Stetler breathing down our necks the rest of our lives," Eric said in a mocking tone, looking out of the corner of his eye at Calleigh, who summoned an innocent look on his behalf. She had to laugh.

"I'm sure I will have enough self control, thank you," she smiled at him and together they entered the yard, heading toward where Horatio stood on the pool deck. Calleigh knelt, staring at the woman floating in front of her, while Horatio filled Eric in on what he knew. She opened her kit, retrieving a swab to collect a sample from the blood splatter she discovered on the wall of the pool above the water line. She stood, closing her kit, and walked slowly around the pool, looking for anything that could help her. She strode past the woman's abandoned lawn chair and floral towel and headed for the back door pf the house. The sliding glass windows stood high above her head. Stepping back to get a better look, she examined for signs of forced entry, but found none. '_The husband looks good for this,' _she thought silently. The doors opened smoothly under her grasp, and Calleigh found herself in one of the nicest homes she's ever set foot in. The den was where the doors had led her. She stopped inside a moment, her jaw dropping in awe. The grand leather couches, plasma TV, personal bar; what didn't this couple own? Remembering she had a job to do, Calleigh continued, grabbing her camera as she ventured further inside. In between taking photographs and her own thoughts, the victim's husband entered the house and joined Calleigh in the den. He cleared his throat nervously.

"Excuse me, officer…" the man was chocking back tears, something Calleigh had seen too much of in the last couple of days.

"Calleigh Duquesne," she corrected him with a compassionate smile.

"Huh…_Calleigh Duquesne; _my wife had the same initials. Catherine Davis," he paused, a single tear escaped despite his effort to hold it back.

"I'm sorry for your loss Mr. Davis," Calleigh walked toward the man, past a row of pictures of the couple on the mantle above the fireplace. The man shifted slightly.

"I'm not supposed to be here, I know how this works, but I wanted to tell you...my wife…she couldn't have done this to herself…she was such a happy person." Calleigh could see he was fighting to stay strong.

"Do you have any idea who may have done this? Did your wife have enemies?"

"No, not at all," he answered. He hadn't looked Calleigh in the face until now. His eyes were lost, a glazed look creeping over his face.

"Have you ever lost someone you love, Ms. Duquesne?" he asked. Calleigh looked around the room, suddenly saddened and uncomfortable. She noticed Eric walking toward the door she had previously entered through and answered,

"I've come close." Her heart sank under the strain of the horrible memory. She took a deep breath, bringing her thoughts back to the case.

"Please find who did this to my wife," Mr. Davis pleaded, more tears joining the first on his cheeks.

"I'll do my best," Calleigh promised as Eric joined them. Eric took one look at Calleigh's face and gave her an encouraging smile- inside he was worried. He hated seeing her this way, he had to remember to ask her about it later- and asked,

"Calleigh, can I talk to you for a minute?

"Excuse us Mr. Davis." She followed Eric back outside into the yard.

"What is it Eric?" Calleigh placed her hands on her hips, waiting for whatever information he was about to give her.

"We've ruled out suicide. When we pulled Mrs. Davis from the water we found defensive wounds on her hands and forearms. From the looks of it, someone attacked her." Eric ran a hand through his hair and sighed. Calleigh nodded in agreement.

"The husband is convinced someone did this to his wife, but I didn't find any signs of a break and enter. As of now, Mr. Davis is our number one suspect," Calleigh looked around the yard. Tom had arrived and was loading Mrs. Davis' body into his van to return with her to autopsy. Eric's soft chuckle turned her attention.

"What is it?" She narrowed her eyes slightly, but seeing Eric's smile brought out her own.

"Just us; they were worried we couldn't work together, but look at us…" he gestured with his hands in the space between them. Stepping forward, Calleigh filled that space.

"They underestimated us; we still make a good team," she whispered- although she had to admit, Eric's constant allure made work a battlefield for her wandering mind, which fell back to her earlier conversation with Mr. Davis. '_Have you ever lost someone you love?'_ She shuddered at the thought of having to ever endure the pain of the helplessness she felt as Eric almost slipped away from her again. The memory of the other night- the rock through the window- drove her farther into her twisted web of thoughts. '_What did it all mean?' _She hated not knowing the answer.

"Calleigh…" Eric's voice dragged her back to reality. She blinked.

"Cal, are you alright?" Eric placed a hand on her shoulder; the worried look he wore in the house had returned.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Could we talk about this later though?" she smiled trying to assure him she was okay, but her eyes darted around the scene. She didn't want to ruin the ability to work with Eric by getting into this conversation here.

"Of course, we'll talk later," he winked and started off in the direction of their crime scene, and Calleigh followed, smiling and forgetting for a moment the reason she was upset at all.

• • •

Sitting on her couch a couple of hours later- the team had collected all the evidence from the Davis home- Calleigh was flipping through the photos she'd taken from the scene and reading over the autopsy report Tom had sent her earlier today. She sighed, running her fingers through her hair; the majority of it falling over one shoulder. Eric entered then, carrying two cups of coffee. He set them on the table and placed a kiss on the top of Calleigh's head. She crossed her legs underneath her.

"Thank you," she smiled, grabbing her cup to take a sip, and then placing it back on the table.

"You're welcome," Eric sat beside her and took part of the stack of papers she had piled on her lap. He scanned the reports and some of the photos, and Calleigh did the same.

"So we know Mrs. Davis didn't commit suicide," Eric mulled over more of the pages.

"Right, Tom said she was poisoned before being put in the pool," Calleigh looked over at Eric waiting for him to add something.

"I didn't recover any fingerprints or DNA off of the body, or find any food or drinks that Mrs. Davis could have been poisoned through," Eric sighed. They both sat silently, lost in their own thoughts. A smart killer always led to dead ends; making this more difficult than usual. Giving up, for now at least, Calleigh threw the papers she had onto the table in front of her. At moment later, Eric did the same. Calleigh lay back then, resting her head in his lap and stretching her legs out across the rest of the couch. She looked up at him, smiling, and he took one of her hands. He stroked her hair with the other. She closed her eyes, rubbing his hand with her fingers.

"Are you feeling better? You looked upset before," Eric's tone softened. Her smile began to fade as she remembered, for the second time today, her conversation with the victim's husband. She opened her eyes and sat up to face him, tucking her knees to her chest. She took a moment to try and put her thoughts into words.

"Mr. Davis was so broken today. He asked me about if I had lost a loved one, and I thought of all the times I almost lost you. All those times, they were the absolute worst feelings in the world Eric. I felt so powerless," she confided, opening up to him more than she thought she should have.

"I never want to feel that way again," she looked into his eyes and saw his heart broken look.

"I'm sorry," she looked at her knees.

"Come here," Eric slid his arms around her shoulders and pulled her toward him until she was sitting on his lap. He felt terrible. She leaned against his chest and he wrapped his arms around her back.

"Calleigh, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry for leaving you that way all those times. I promise you, though; I will never give up fighting, no matter how much danger I am faced with, and I'll never leave you Cal. You're safe with me." He rested his hand on the back of her head. Kissing her was the best way of apologizing he could come up with. She wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I love you," she breathed, breaking the kiss a moment later.

"I love you too," Eric said, beginning to kiss her again. Calleigh let him kiss her, reveling in the moment; a moment where she had no reason to worry about him disappearing and just be happy that they were together. Finally, though, she moved from his lap back to the couch by his side, leaning on his shoulder; his one arm around her. She closed her eyes, happily, and without realizing, drifted into a peaceful sleep in a matter of minutes. Eric noticed her breathing had slowed and he smiled. He slipped an arm under her legs, lifting her off the couch. Quietly, he carried Calleigh to her bed so she could sleep comfortably. He covered her with the blanket, leaving her in her work clothes, and placed a soft kiss on her lips.

"Goodnight Cal," he whispered.

• • •

_Again, he had escaped unnoticed; another perfect crime. He wasn't proud of himself exactly; he had just killed someone after all, but it had to be done. He knew that this wasn't the end. 'Will it ever end?' he asked himself. If ever, it wasn't going to be soon. He had to press forward; he knew Horatio would soon figure things out- as much as he hoped he wouldn't. Horatio was just too good; 'but he'd never been as good as you,' he told himself proudly. He had to keep going, for however long it takes for them see what he wanted them to see; that he had enough power to conquer even the strongest of people. This war, he knew, would last forever._


	7. Chapter 7

Calleigh felt the sunlight caress her face as she slowly stirred from her deep sleep. Her eyelids felt heavy as she tried to open them, so she kept them shut and continued to enjoy the morning sun. She stretched out under the covers, rubbing her feet together to warm them. Until then she hadn't noticed the abnormal feeling covering her body. Her eyes opened easily this time as she lifted the blanket and rested back on her elbow. She was still wearing what she had worn to work yesterday. She frowned, rubbing her eyes, and sat up. Before she could begin to think of why she hadn't changed, she yawned. In the time it took her to inhale sharply at the thought, she remembered. She had been going over the case file last night with Eric...

"Eric!" she said aloud. She glanced around her room, no sign of him. Throwing off the rest of her blankets, she jumped out of bed and headed downstairs to her kitchen to call him. She didn't even get through the kitchen door, when she saw him standing at her fridge looking for something inside. She sighed and smiled as she watched him. Running her fingers through her hair, she walked toward him. Standing behind him, she placed her hand gently in the middle of his back. He turned suddenly but relaxed when he realized it was her. He smiled and framed her face in his hands.

"Good morning," he told her, kissing her lips.

"Good morning. You stayed," she smiled, wrapping her arms around him.

"Well, yeah. I didn't want you to worry when you woke up," he shrugged. Calleigh moved from their embrace to grab some orange juice out of the fridge. She grabbed two glasses from the cupboard and poured some for both of them. She handed Eric his glass and together they sat at the kitchen table.

"How did you sleep?" Eric asked, taking her hand. Calleigh took a sip of her orange juice.

"Fine," she answered after a moment. Eric nodded but eyed her now wrinkled dress shirt and creased pants and immediately felt a pang of regret.

"Cal, I'm sorry I let you sleep in your clothes, you must have been uncomfortable. It's just you looked so peaceful last night. I couldn't wake you," he said, looking away. Calleigh looked down at her outfit and shrugged. She put her glass down on the table and leaned closer to Eric. With her hand on the side of his face, she turned his head toward her so she could kiss him. Leaning back she assured him,

"Don't feel bad, I didn't even notice until this morning. I do feel bad for falling asleep on you though," she chuckled, grabbing her glass to take another sip.

"Don't worry about it," Eric laughed but was interrupted by the ring of his cell phone. He pulled it out of his pocket and answered, looking at Calleigh. She cocked her head slightly while Eric nodded and murmured the occasional "Hmm," or "Okay sure," into the phone. Hanging up, he nodded in the direction of the door.

"Time to go."

• • •

Ryan stood against the glass counter as he waited for the blood sample- from the Davis' pool- that Calleigh had given him to either give him a lead, or send him to another dead end. He tapped his fingers on the table and yawned. Natalia walked in, then, and grinned.

"Out late partying last night or something?" She laughed silently coming to face him on the other side of the table. She raised her eyebrows waiting for him to answer. Ryan rolled his eyes and gave her a look that asked "_Really?_"

"Not quite, but nice try," he smiled. The DNA was still processing when his phone rang. He answered,

"This is Wolfe. Horatio, hey! Sure, okay, see you in ten."

"What's going on?" Natalia asked.

"Nat, could you do me a favor and finish with the results from the blood for me? Horatio needs me on a homicide," he gave her a pleading smile.

"Of course Ryan," she agreed

"You're the best, see you later," he grabbed his jacket and walked down the hallway out of sight. Almost as soon as he'd left, the computer beeped. They got a match to the blood, Catherine Davis, their victim. Natalia sighed and began printing the results. Placing the papers in a folder, she looked up and jumped a little at the sight of Rick Stetler leaning against the door frame.

"Have you seen Horatio, Ms. Boavista?" he asked coolly. Natalia straightened as she answered.

"He's out in the field. Do you want me to leave him a message?" She glanced around, looking for something to write on.

"No, that's fine. I'll talk to him myself," he gave her a cold smile and just as quickly, and as silently, as he'd come, he was gone. Natalia shuddered and picked up her phone.

Ryan felt his phone vibrate in his pocket and heard the muffled ring as he pulled into the driveway belonging to the address Horatio had given him. He looked at the screen before answering. '_Natalia,_' the screen read. He put the phone to his ear.

"Hey Natalia, what's up?" he proceeded to get out of the hummer, grabbing his kit off the passenger seat.

"I got a match off of your blood sample, but unfortunately it was the victims. I'm sorry Ryan." Ryan shook his head in disappointment.

"Thanks Natalia," Ryan entered the house as he disconnected the call. He walked through the foyer of the house and into the small backyard through a sliding door in the kitchen. In the middle of the yard was a gazebo. Horatio stood inside next to their new victim. Ryan climbed the steps of the gazebo and began photographing the young woman. Short, blonde hair, she couldn't be older than thirty; maybe in her mid thirties. Horatio stood silently, thinking and scanning the yard.

"Mr. Wolfe, there's something off about this scene," Horatio finally spoke. Ryan stood from the kneeling position he had taken and looked around, following Horatio's gaze.

"It does look clean. The body too; no blood spatters, but some evident defensive wounds." He thought for a moment.

"You know, this is very similar to our Catherine Davis case."

"Yes, young women; blonde women, a clean killer. We may have a serial case on our hands," Horatio's face hardened. At that point, Calleigh and Eric arrived at the scene, still taking every chance they could to work together. With Ryan and Horatio still in the backyard, the two of them processed the inside of the house. Upstairs, Calleigh took the woman's bedroom, and Eric ventured down the hall to her bathroom. Calleigh looked around the empty room and eyed a purse sitting on the bed. She dumped the contents out in front of her; a pack of gum, lipstick and- '_Yes,_' she thought- a wallet. She opened the clasp to find a drivers license. Caitlin Douglas. Calleigh bagged the entire wallet, as well as everything else in the purse, and walked out of the room to find Eric.

"Find anything?" she asked, coming to a stop outside the bathroom door.

"No. Did you?" he asked, hoping they'd catch a break.

"I found her wallet. Vic's name is Caitlin Douglas," she told him. It wasn't much, but it was a start. They both headed downstairs to inform Horatio and Ryan.

After an hour and a half of processing the scene, the four CSI's exited the victim's house toward their vehicles, carrying boxes of evidence they collected. Rick was walking in their direction as they neared the driveway. He stopped and stood arrogantly, waving Horatio over.

"Ryan, go back and help Tom with the body. Calleigh, Eric, take the evidence back to the lab. I'll meet you all there later," Horatio ordered, continuing down the driveway to meet Rick. Ryan left for the backyard after handing his box to Eric. He and Calleigh, then, walked past the two men, Rick turning his head slightly to watch them pass. Every time she saw him, Calleigh felt more uncomfortable. She picked up her pace until Eric had to jog to keep up with her. When they were out of earshot he grabbed her arm, stopping her.

"What's the matter?" Calleigh ripped her arm out of his grasp and continued to walk.

"I'm sorry Eric; can we talk about this when we get to the car?" Eric nodded and strode quickly beside her. Back in the driveway, Horatio had lost his patience.

"What are you really doing here Rick, besides interrupting my investigation?" he glared.

"Mr. Delko and Ms. Duquesne, you let them work together even though, as I'm sure you know, they are romantically involved," Rick folded his arms angrily.

"What my CSI's do off the clock is their business," Horatio calmly stated,

"There's a rule in the department-" Rick started but Horatio cut him off,

"Which has been around, and ignored, for a while Rick. The way I see it, they aren't compromising any cases," Horatio checked his watched, finished with the conversation.

"It better stay that way," Rick said flatly, turning on his heel and storming toward the street.

• • •

In the hummer, Calleigh watched Rick practically running toward his car.

"Drive," she told Eric. Eric looked worried. As they sped down the street, Calleigh relaxed.

"Calleigh, can you please tell me what that was all about?" Eric sounded angry, but he wasn't. He only wanted an explanation as to why Calleigh was acting so different.

"Stetler, do you notice how he's always around all of a sudden?" she turned in her seat to face him.

"I've always thought Stetler was strange, so no I'm not sure what you mean," Eric looked at her, wanting her to explain.

"I'm just thinking of that time he caught us together, the time he took you off the Hamilton/Brentford case, and now this; just showing up at the scene and getting into it with Horatio. I don't remember him being so invasive. Something's off…" she was ranting now, biting her nail.

"Cal, the guy has a lot of issues, you know that," Eric couldn't understand why she was getting so worked up over this.

"I guess," she looked out the window. Something in the rearview mirror caught her eye; A silver car following close behind them. She squinted through the glare of the sun, catching a glimpse of the driver. She shot back in her seat so fast Eric almost slammed on the brakes.

"Calleigh, what is it?!" Eric practically stopped breathing.

"Look," she pointed to the rearview mirror. Eric quickly glanced in the mirror.

"It's Stetler," Calleigh whispered even though she and Eric were the only ones in the hummer.

"He's probably going back to IAB. You're scaring me Cal, are you sure you're alright?"

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine. It just took me off guard." Calleigh took a deep breath. Eric rubbed her shoulder with one hand.

"Are you sure?" he looked earnestly at her, trying his best to help her calm down.

"I promise," she smiled at him, glad to have him there with her. She looked back out the window as he continued to rub her shoulder. The car behind them had disappeared.

• • •

After she had left work later that day- it had taken her a few minutes to convince Eric that she was alright, and that she just needed the evening to be alone- Calleigh stepped into the shower. Her skin burned as she first stepped under the stream of hot water.

_Outside, the man- dressed all in black- approached her front door. He didn't have to struggle with the door knob- Calleigh had been too caught up in her thoughts to remember to lock it. He let himself in, shutting the door quietly behind him. He looked around, noticing the fineness of Calleigh's home. He thought for a moment that she might not be here, but he then heard the running water of a shower. He turned toward the sound and silently walked up the stairs toward it. He entered her bedroom and the sound of the water became louder. He inhaled deeply as he entered. He strode beside her bed, running his hand along the top of the blanket. The knife he carried was like dead-weight in his back pocket, but he knew what he had to do. As he neared the bathroom door he reached for it, flipping the blade into place. On the dresser, Calleigh's cell phone rang, sounding so loud in the silence that he practically jumped out of his own skin. Before he could get the knife back into his pocket, he heard the water shut off and the shower door open. The cell phone continued to ring. Almost falling on the way, he ran out of the bedroom, downstairs and back out the door._

Calleigh heard a door slam as she was putting on her bathrobe. She went completely rigid. She could just hear her phone ringing over the sound of her breathing. Slowly, she opened her bathroom door and peeked out into her bedroom, preparing herself for anything. She walked out when nothing struck her as out of the ordinary and grabbed her phone.

"Hello?" she sort of whispered into the phone, moving quietly out of her room to find out what was going on.

"Cal, hey it's Eric. I just wanted to make sure you were okay. I know you said you wanted to be alone, but I had to call," he sounded embarrassed for worrying, but Calleigh smiled at his concern.

"Eric, would you hate me if I asked you to come over, I don't want to be alone anymore," she bit her lip, trying to keep her voice from shaking. She wouldn't admit that she was scared. She felt better when she heard the shuffling and grabbing of car keys on the other end.

"I'll be right there."

"Thank you," she answered, heading downstairs. She got to the landing, still holding the phone to her ear. She heard a car speed past outside, but she ignored it.

Sitting down in the living room, she put the phone down beside her and waited for Eric, not even thinking he had just inadvertently saved her life.


	8. Chapter 8

Calleigh shivered under her bathrobe, getting up to dry her hair. She returned upstairs, placing her phone back on her dresser. She grabbed her blow dryer and turned it on. She shivered again as the warm air fit her face and faintly trailed down her neck. She began to dry her hair, but over the whir of the air by her ear, she failed to notice the sound of a door opening and closing once again. When her hair was dry, she ran a brush through it, letting it fall loosely over her shoulders. She walked back into her room and heard the quiet footfalls on the stairs. Before she could take her next breath, she ran across her room to the closet, where she kept her gun case. Crouching, she grabbed her gun and steadied it in her hands. Moving out of the closet, she tiptoed toward the door, breathing silently. She had been unsettled since that night at Eric's last week, and she now found herself constantly on guard. Another footstep, accompanied with a creak of the hallway floorboard, sent a chill down her spine. She took a deep breath and turned into the hallway, her gun raised in front of her. Eric stood in the hallway before her. Realizing who it was, Calleigh dropped her gun, holding it at her waist, and gave him an exasperated look. Eric held both hands up in surrender.

"Don't shoot," his look of shock faded and was replaced with a somewhat nervous smile.

"How did you get in here?" Calleigh asked, turning and heading back to her room to put her gun away.

"The front door was unlocked. I figured you'd left it open since you knew I was coming," he said as he followed her into the bedroom. At that Calleigh stopped short, spinning around to face him. The memory of ten minutes ago flashed in her mind. She could hear the slamming door as clear as if it were happening again right in front of her. Her eyes widened and Eric walked toward her, gently grabbing her shoulder with one hand and her face with the other.

"Cal, what is it?" he asked, noticing her expression. She placed her hand over the hand he had placed on her cheek.

"Eric, before you called earlier, you didn't come by did you?" She looked him in the eyes.

"No. Why?" Eric rose and eyebrow. Calleigh's jaw dropped slightly.

"Someone was here. I was getting out of the shower to answer your call, and I heard the front door slam." She began to walk out of the room, but Eric grabbed her hand, pulling her into his arms.

"Calleigh, I locked the door behind me, it's okay. Maybe you imagined what you heard."

"No, I didn't, I-" she interrupted, but Eric put a finger to her lips, and continued.

"There's no one inside Calleigh, and I'm here now. Everything will be alright." Calleigh smiled, shaking her head slightly, and planted a kiss softly on his lips. She walked once again into her closet to return her gun to the case. She stood, locking the case, turned, and walked right into Eric; he'd come to stand just outside the closet door.

"So what is it with you pointing guns at me anyway?" Eric mocked, folding Calleigh into an embrace. He looked down at her and she narrowed her eyes playfully.

"Hmm, I don't know," she shrugged, pushing him backwards until he felt his legs collide with her bed.

"Maybe for the same reason you drove a car at me," she winked and pushed him just hard enough to make him fall backward. She climbed onto the bed beside him, lying on her side to face him. She rested her head on his shoulder and placed her hand on his chest. She ran her fingers over his abdomen, playing with the buttons on his shirt as she passed over them. Eric turned his head and stared at her before closing his eyes and gently kissing her forehead. He pulled her closer to him with his hand on her hip, until there bodies were just touching. He ran his hands over her back, feeling the softness of her bathrobe and breathing in the scent of her hair, all the while feeling her fingers trace the contours of his own back. He sighed, kissing her lips and selfishly breaking their gentle passion. Calleigh didn't seem to mind, holding his face and kissing him back. His kisses then moved from her mouth, down her neck and over her shoulder under her bathrobe.

"Eric," she spoke into his shoulder as he kissed her.

"Hmm?" he murmured in response, continuing to plant kisses across her chest.

"Do you think it's funny how whenever we do this, something bad ends up happening?" Calleigh couldn't help but laugh.

"I think it was just a coincidence," Eric smiled, proceeding to untie her bathrobe. She quickly unbuttoned his shirt, pulling it back over his shoulders. Throwing the shirt on the floor, she stopped. Her eyes widened again. A question formed on Eric's tongue but Calleigh shook her head. She looked around; waiting, Eric realized. She finally turned her gaze back to him, and smiled.

"No rock," she said, and Eric nodded.

"No rock." He kissed her before she could say anything else and pulled her even closer than before, their bodies now pressed together from ankle to shoulder. Together they slipped away, holding each other so tight; as if they'd never hold each other again. Their love engulfed them in a hurry of soft cries and clutching of sheets until millions of tiny stars exploded behind their eyes; their last slivers of control slipping away. The quiet closed in around them, only disturbed by the sound of their breathing. They lay tangled in each other's arms as they fell into sleep and until they heard the alarm signaling the start of a new day.

Eric's dream began to fade away- the colours of the scene slowly morphing into the black colour of the inside of his eyelids- as the sound of his voice being called got louder and louder. When he opened an eye, he noticed Calleigh lying on her stomach with her head propped on one hand, staring at him. He closed his eyes and smiled.

"Eric," she said again. She moved close enough so she could whisper in his ear.

"It's time to get up."

"I am up," he whispered back, still not opening his eyes. Calleigh sat up, pulling the covers up to her neck. She shrugged.

"I guess we won't have anymore sleepovers on work nights." A smile stretched across her face. Eric blinked and looked up to find her laughing.

"Alright, alright," he stretched out and yawned before finally sitting up. He rubbed his eyes and kissed Calleigh's shoulder, then her cheek.

"Good morning to you too," he yawned again. Calleigh nodded and snuggled beside him.

"Morning," she said sweetly.

"We have to get going soon." She tilted her head up just in time for Eric to meet her lips. She closed her eyes and felt Eric's hand wander over her stomach and slide up her arm, leaving paths of warmth as he went. She squeezed his arm before pulling away. She began to slip off the bed in search of her robe, but Eric was quick to grab her hand and silently beg her backward.

"We have to-" was all she could get out before Eric covered her mouth, again, with his own. Calleigh sighed in defeat and wrapped herself in his arms.

"They'll be angry if we're late," Calleigh warned.

"They can wait," Eric smiled, but Calleigh put her foot down.

"You know if we start this, we'll never leave the house," she breathed, feeling herself giving in.

"Is that a bad thing?" Eric went to pull her back once more, but Calleigh leaned only close enough for her top lip to touch his, and then she pulled away before Eric could catch her. She winked, slipping into her robe, and smiled as she walked out of the room to make some coffee.

• • •

Horatio pulled onto the highway. The radio was playing a song he didn't know but he hummed along anyway. The clock read 8:03am. He would be at the crime lab in twenty minutes. His eyes wandered quickly from the road to his phone that was lying with his badge and glasses on the passenger seat. He cursed under his breath; he'd forgotten to charge the phone's battery the night before. Keeping one hand on the wheel, he reached over and opened the glove box. His eyes darted back to the road as he rummaged through the papers, a map and some garbage in the compartment. He pulled out a black cord and plugged one end into the power source on his dash and the other into his phone. A green light flashed on the phone letting him know it was charging. He settled back in his seat, shutting the glove box. Traffic had begun to pile up in front of him. He scratched his head as he strained to see what the hold up was. He put on his glasses and noticed, then, the school bus teetering on the railing of the bridge just metres from him. With his breath caught in his throat, Horatio flared the hummer's siren and watched as the vehicles slowly split ahead of him. He raced toward the bus- it was now concealed by fire rescue trucks and patrol cars blaring red and blue lights- and jumped out when he reached the perimeter of the scene. His mind was so focused on the children in the bus, that he didn't bother closing the door behind him. He made his way through police officers and fire fighters, all running this way and that, until he reached the bus. A tow truck had just attached a hook to the bumper of the bus, and more fire fighters waved the driver to begin to pull the bus back onto the bridge.

"What've we got?!" Horatio yelled over the noise to a policeman standing nearby.

"Twenty or so kids, a couple of teachers and the bus driver on board. We're going to try and bring the bus back over as much as we can, then pull them out through the emergency door at the back." Horatio nodded his agreement and watched as the rear wheels of the bus lowered steadily toward the ground. When the tow truck tires began to squeal and smoke rose around them- the bus was suspended, the back half nearly inches from the ground- Horatio drew a long, ragged breath and moved forward to help rescue the stranded students and teachers who had woken up this morning expecting to enjoy a field trip quite unlike the one they ended up taking.

"Here we go," Horatio said as he disappeared into the smoke.

• • •

"You're lucky we weren't late," Calleigh teased, looking from her watch, reading 8:10am, to Eric, as they pulled into the parking lot of the crime lab. They took the first free stall they came across, and Eric turned to her as he shut off the engine. He unbuckled his seat belt before reaching for hers.

"You know, we still have some time left," he teased back, pulling her across the seat to his lap. Calleigh shook her head, but kissed him anyway. The vibration of her phone between them, however, made them both jump. Calleigh reared back and pulled the phone out of her pocket. '_One new text message from H. Caine,' _the screen read. She opened the message.

'_Calleigh I need you on a scene. 14839, 10__th__ Ave, Coconut Grove. – H.' _

"What is it?" Eric asked.

"Horatio called me out to a scene. I have to go, but I'll talk to you later," she got out of the car and put her phone back into her pocket. Eric got out and walked around to her before she could head off to her hummer. He gave her one last kiss and whispered 'I love you' in her ear.

"I love you too," she whispered back, feeling her cheek brush against his. She smiled once more and waved when she reached the hummer and he had turned to head inside. At the door he watched her turn out of the parking lot, the morning sunlight glinting off the hood. Inside, the met Natalia and Ryan, who were going over evidence from their Catherine Davis and Caitlin Douglas murders.

"So what do we know?" Ryan asked, running a hand over his face.

"Both women were poisoned, according to Tom. They were both in their mid thirties, and found in their backyards," Eric offered, scanning the photos from both crime scenes.

"They both have the initials 'C.D,' and neither of them have children," Natalia concluded from their notes and the victims drivers licenses.

"So I'd say we're definitely looking at a serial case here," Ryan sighed.

"Now it's just a matter of finding something that can be traced back to the killer," Eric said.

"DNA's a bust. The killer must've worn gloves, and there were no fingerprints aside from the victims," Natalia added.

"I did find one thing out of place, though," Ryan shuffled through photos of the second crime scene.

"I picked up a piece of broken glass next to the gazebo stairs, but all of the windows and doors of the victim's house were intact." Ryan puzzled, passing the photo to Eric. Eric narrowed his eyes.

"That means the killer had the glass on him before he killed Caitlin Douglas." Eric looked at Natalia and Ryan and they nodded.

"So, where did the glass come from?" Natalia looked at the guys for an answer, but they stayed silent. The three of them sat momentarily in thought. One by one they each began looking at more photos, knowing they didn't have an answer. They almost didn't notice the door open behind them until Horatio joined their conversation.

"How's it coming?"

"It's coming," Ryan responded. Horatio nodded and looked around the room. He frowned.

"Where's Calleigh?" he looked at Eric. Eric turned and Ryan and Natalia looked up in interest. Eric's eyebrows furrowed.

"She got your text about half an hour ago and headed out to the scene as soon as we got here…" Eric trailed off when he saw a deep look of horror cross Horatio's usually composed face.

"What?" Eric began to panic.

"Eric, I didn't send Calleigh a text message this morning," Horatio swallowed and watched as his own horror-struck look mirrored on the faces of his colleagues, paralyzing them in shock and fear. Eric felt his knees weaken. The blood drained from his face, and distant noises in the lab began to sound muffled; as if he had cotton in his ears. As his head began to spin, along with the room, he fought to stay balanced on his chair. His quiet, agonized cry broke the silence.

"No!" he shook his head.

"No, not again."


	9. Chapter 9

Before getting out of her hummer, Calleigh peered at the property through the passenger side window. The grass stood knee-high and grew wildly through the broken picket fence. The house was two stories high, and the roof was completely covered in plastic and ratty blue tarps. The windows were coated with dust; the house has been vacant for a few months at the earliest, Calleigh concluded. She gripped her kit tightly in one hand as she entered the house. In her other hand she held her flashlight. The beam of light cast shadows on the darkened entryway. Calleigh could see a few pieces of living room furniture covered in white sheets in the room to her left. A faint smell of paint fumes hung in the air. There was no body. She frowned but then noticed the crooked staircase ahead of her, assuming, then, that was body must be on the next floor. She slowly climbed, her flashlight leading her into a long hallway. She could see the wallpaper chipping away from the walls around her as she made her way toward the first door. She held the flashlight between her teeth and jiggled the doorknob with her free hand. It was locked. The door on her right was open, so she took that room. This room faced the front of the house, centered around a large window looking onto the front lawn. Through the dust coating on the window, she could barely make out her hummer parked on the street. There was a bed to the left of the window with a night side table against it. The bed was made up with a floral duvet and a layer of dust that had settled evenly across the surface. On the table was an old picture of a smiling young couple. Calleigh picked up the frame and blew dust from the faces of the boy and girl. She smiled and thought of Eric, but her smile faded as her next thought struck her. They didn't have any pictures of them as a couple. Calleigh sighed and decided right then, today they'd get a picture. A cold draft crept into the room through the floorboards, the window, and the walls. A shiver ran down the length of her spine. She wanted to find this body and process the scene as quickly as she could. The place gave her the creeps. Placing the photo back into the void of clean space it had created in the dust- as if she had never been there- Calleigh left the small room and followed the hallway towards where she presumed the master bedroom would be. The quiet became unsettling, but she pressed on. Another step and she heard the light knock. It was no louder than a quiet breath. Calleigh thought she'd imagined it. Whipping around, she aimed the flashlight in front of her. The light covered a few meters, but then faded into blackness. Calleigh was suddenly aware of how alone she was. Over the pounding in her chest, she heard a small voice in the back of her mind. Something is wrong. Beads of sweat slowly broke out across her forehead, and her breathing now drowned out any other noise in the hallway. Her own startled scream, however, pierced the silence. Her cell phone was ringing at her waist. Her kit and flashlight clattered to the floor; the kit popping open on its side, spilling her equipment, and the flashlight stuttering out, hurtling Calleigh into total darkness. She swiped the phone from her belt and positioned it between her shoulder and her ear. She knelt down and began feeling for the flashlight as she spoke.

"Hello?" she said, her voice shaking violently. She patted the hard wooden floor on her right.

"Cal?" it was Eric. She inched forward on her knees.

"Eric? What is it?" She felt her body relax when she finally wrapped her fingers around the handle of the flashlight. She stood up and switched the phone to her other ear. She tapped the flashlight in her palm, attempting to turn it back on.

"Calleigh, babe, where are you?" she panicked at the frantic way Eric spoke to her. She tapped the flashlight again.

"I'm in Coconut Grove on the case. I told you this morning remember?" One last tap of the flashlight and the light began to struggle back to life. She knelt down again, this time collecting her kit. She heard Eric draw in a deep breath.

"Horatio didn't send you that text message," Eric said monotonously, but Calleigh could hear the hidden fear laced through his comment, the way his voice cracked before he fell silent. She could see his pained expression in her mind- his eyebrows pulled up toward his forehead, the anger deep in his eyes. She stopped fiddling with the contents of her kit; her hands felt numb.

"What?" it came out only as a whisper. Calleigh felt the burning pressure building up behind her ears, in her stomach, even in her toes, until she could feel it in every part of her body. Fear seemed to replace all of the blood in her veins. Her head spun with an onslaught of questions. She couldn't see, couldn't breathe. The darkness seemed to press down on her lungs.

"Calleigh!" Eric said for the second time.

"I'm here," she choked on the words; her voice sounding foreign to her.

"You have to-" she heard him say, but another noise behind her caught her attention. She spun around, nearly tripping on her kit that still lay at her feet. A blood curdling scream forced its way up her throat, shaking Eric to tears on the other end of the line. Calleigh felt the sharp blow to her head before she saw her attacker. Her phone was sent flying; landing in a million pieces after hitting the wall. Calleigh collapsed in a heap on the floor in front of the man who had long been waiting for her.

• • •

"Calleigh!" Eric screamed once, twice, until he had lost count. His knees buckled beneath him, but he grabbed the table, steadying himself before he could crumple to the floor. He let his phone slip out of his hand without realizing, and watched as it seemed to fall in slow motion toward the linoleum. He made no move to pick it up as it hit the floor. All he could think about was Calleigh. What had she worn to work today? What had been the last thing he said to her this morning? He wanted to kick himself for not remembering. He thought. He remembered, now, waking up this morning and seeing her lying beside him, their last fight, the night that had almost ended perfectly but was ruined by some psycho with a rock and impeccable aim. He felt sick at the thought of the promise he'd broken. _'You're safe with me Cal,' _he heard his own voice echo in his mind. He'd promised, and now he was here and his girlfriend- the love of his life- was missing. His stomach turned in knots. He had to find her. He wiped the tears from his cheek with the back of his arm. Once he regained his balance, he burst out of the room, bolting down the hallway in the direction of Dave Benton's office. The hallway seemed longer than Eric ever knew it to be. He ran past his baffled co-workers, some of whom he had never taken time to learn their names. He kept running, Calleigh's screams ringing in his ears, sending chills through his body.

"Dave!" he burst into the small room. Dave jumped out of his seat, his long ponytail flying behind him.

"Eric, are you alright, what's going on?" Dave asked eying Eric's distressed expression; the look in his eyes made Dave fall silent. His eyes darted back and forth waiting for a change in Eric's face. None came.

"Calleigh's missing. I need you to run her number so I can find her. Please." The last word barely escaping his mouth but Dave heard the crack in Eric's voice. He didn't ask any questions, just rushed toward the AV lab with Eric on his heels. He punched in her number and the data suddenly swirled on the screen before their eyes. With a loud beep an address popped up in front of them.

"Thanks man," Eric said before starting off again down the hallway. He threw open the front doors of the crime lab and ran outside, shielding his eyes from the blinding sunlight, dodging Rick on the way.

"Whoa Delko, where are you off to in such a hurry?" Rick sneered. Eric almost exploded with fury, the heat boiling under his skin. He stared at Rick darkly.

"Not now Stetler," he told him. Eric continued on to his car at a jog. He had to get to Calleigh before anything happened. As much as he tried, he couldn't stop his mind from throwing him pictures of Calleigh. In pain…tortured…_dead_. He couldn't fathom the idea. He peeled out of the parking lot and sped down the street, almost twice as fast as the speed limit, in the direction of the address Dave had given him. Concentrating on the blaring sirens of his hummer kept Eric from letting the tears escape. He looked at the clock on the dash and his mouth fell open. Fifteen minutes had already passed since he last spoke to Calleigh. He pushed the gas pedal harder, until it practically rested on the floor. He took the corners on two wheels, praying there wouldn't be anything in his way that would slow him down. Five minutes later, Eric spotted Calleigh's hummer parked on the shoulder alongside a run down, pathetic excuse for a house. Rolling up beside the vehicle, he practically flew out of the car not bothering to cut the engine. Sprinting up the walkway, he drew his gun. He stopped at the front door- it was open- and took a deep breath, readying himself for whatever he may find inside. Entering the house he held his gun ahead of him. He didn't have a flashlight, so the darkness had one over on him. He crept slowly farther into the foyer, straining to hear even the slightest of sounds that could tell him where Calleigh was.

"Calleigh!" he screamed into the dark. No answer, only the sound of his heartbeat in his ears. He found the stairs and headed to the second floor. He called Calleigh's name again. It echoed in the long hallway. As he walked forward, he felt something crush under his foot. He bent to the floor and picked up what was left of Calleigh's phone. He ran his thumb over the surface then picked up the other pieces. He stuffed them all into his pocket- thinking the others could use it to help figure out who sent the text message- and kept walking. A few meters on, Eric found her kit. He bent once more, and groped around the metal box. He felt her flashlight lying beside it. When it didn't turn on right away, he tapped it in his palms- just as Calleigh had- until the light faintly illuminated the hallway. Flashlight and gun raised, he pressed on, calling out to Calleigh every couple of seconds. He went through the entire house, kicking down locked doors and searching empty closets, but other than the phone and kit left discarded on the hallway floor, there was no sign anyone had been here at all, or was still here; not Calleigh, or her kidnapper.

• • •

Calleigh heard the sirens approaching and she began to cry. Someone was looking for her; Eric, she knew. She had just regained consciousness but she kept her eyes closed, afraid to find out where she was. She could feel the gag pulled tight against her cheeks, the rope that cut her wrists behind her. Her hair was plastered to her forehead from sweating and the gouge on her temple sent blood dripping slowly down the side of her face to pool around her ear. The sirens were right on top of her now, for a split second, and then they passed. Not long after, though, they stopped. She opened her eyes, someone was close. She realized, then, that she was enclosed somewhere small; a trunk maybe? Then she heard it. The most beautiful sound she could think of hearing at that moment: Eric's voice; Eric's voice calling her name. The tears ran faster now. She breathed deeply through her nose; sobbing made it hard to breathe with the gag in her mouth. She was going to get out of here. She sighed, replaying Eric's voice in her mind. Tears still escaped, but slowly, making tracks over the dust on her face. She tried to call out to Eric. She screamed, but against the gag it was useless. She heard footsteps outside of the trunk now. She began to squirm, trying to get Eric's attention. The trunk moved with her.

"Shut up!" the voice outside ordered. It wasn't Eric. Calleigh went completely still after moving herself as far back as she could. She took a chance and screamed again, the sound once more blocked by the gag. This time, instead of silence following, a bullet broke through the door of the trunk above her. It missed her by inches and continued on through the floor of the trunk where she had been lying moments before. She bit down on the fabric in her mouth to keep herself from crying and making anymore noise and squeezed her eyes shut. The man outside quickly got into the front seat and started the car. Her eyes flew back open. _'No. No. No!' _Calleigh thought. As the car turned off the street, Calleigh let the tears fall freely, no longer worrying if anyone heard her sobbing.

• • •

Eric left the house and walked briskly back toward his hummer. Anger filled his head, an attempt to block the devastation. He kicked the small fence and sent one of the boards onto a neighbour's lawn. With tears brimming, threatening to fall, he looked up and down the street desperately thinking of where Calleigh could possibly be. Everything was still except one car on the road driving away, turning the corner and disappearing out of sight.


End file.
